The Iron Sights

[Matthew Koch]

9 hours ago, Benjamin Cole said:

I am not much experienced with firearms, but no one uses a scope to track a moving target. The target bounces wildly all around in or even outside the scope sight---I have experienced that myself. 

That why I am asking---if someone takes a rifle out of garage where it has laid for a few weeks or months, and disassembles it, and then re-assembles it, would the iron sights need readjustment.

A scope obviously would, nor could LHO have fired a few practice rounds to "dial the scope in." 

That leaves, by default, the iron sights. Can we assume the iron sights were dead on? 

The WC, and even the HSCA, are asking us to accept the one shot hit a moving JFK in the head, and another in the high neck. Another shot flew over the limo by 20 feet, or maybe struck the asphalt behind the limo. 

 

In Sylvia Meaher's 'Accessories After The Fact' she found a reference from the FBI in the Warren Report supplemental volumes that the scope appeared to have been mounted for a left handed person.. Oswald in his military photos is shooting right handed,  so did the conspirators mess up and have the scope mounted for a left handed Oswald? What else is weird is the repair tag in the gun shop with Oswald's name on it. Was someone trying to account for the fact that the rifle in the TSBD didn't come with a scope on it? 

I grew up shooting guns and I can't imagine using iron sights if there was a scope attached to the rifle. I would assume the scope was accurate unless I fired at a target and it was off. If it was off, I would spend time zeroing the scope in. This is what leads me to believe that the shooter in the snipers nest may not have been trying to hit anyone because it wouldn't matter if the scope was aligned, you're just sticking the barrel out the window and firing.. and there is a lot of evidence of missed shots; Teague bullet on south main, cement around man hole on south elm, grass next to street on south elm that FBI man allegedly picked a bullet up and put in his pocket, window frame on the Limo. I think it's a strong possibility the person shooting in the TSBD may have just been a decoy and may not have been aiming at anyone in the limo. 

 

[Tom Gram]

3 hours ago, Gerry Down said:

But would an Enfield fire a full metal jacket military round? I don't know much about rifles.

I think Oswald's plan was to fire a bullet through Walkers glass window to shoot Walker. To do that you would need a hard tipped full metal jacketed round rather than a soft tipped bullet. A soft tipped bullet would disintegrate upon contact with the glass.

Is that the reason LHO choose a mannlicher carcano? That was the cheapest rifle he could get that fired ammunition capable of going through a glass window?

Pretty sure there was plenty of FMJ ammo available for the Enfield. I’m no expert, but a quick Google search has a bunch of results e.g. https://thecastlearms.com/product-category/ammo-303-british

Also the Klein’s Ad at the bottom says you can buy 100 rounds of “brass military ammo” for $7. 

[Gerry Down]

2 hours ago, Tom Gram said:

Pretty sure there was plenty of FMJ ammo available for the Enfield. I’m no expert, but a quick Google search has a bunch of results e.g. https://thecastlearms.com/product-category/ammo-303-british

Also the Klein’s Ad at the bottom says you can buy 100 rounds of “brass military ammo” for $7. 

Maybe Oswald figured the round tip of a carcano bullet would be more stable going through glass than the more usual pointed tip bullet. I don't know if the rounded tip bullets were specific to carcanos.

The other possibility is that Oswald's other main concern in buying the rifle was it's length. Oswald was planning on concealing the rifle and getting on a bus with it to near Walkers house. Therefore as short a rifle as possible would be ideal to hide it on the bus. LHO ordered a 36 inch rifle but they actually sent him a 40 inch version.